Baltic VCA

The Baltic venture capital market will be united under a single flag

The Baltic venture capital market will be united under a single flag

Pan-Baltic Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (Pan-Baltic VCA) was founded on August 25th at the meeting of the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian private equity and venture capital associations with the aim to develop an attractive and viable regional ecosystem of the venture capital for the fund managers and investors.

The teams of the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian private equity and risk capital associations will support the work of the Baltic Private Equity and Venture Capital Association. The Chairman of the Board of the Latvian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, Edgars Pigoznis, said that establishment of the umbrella organization enables to share obligations, unify cooperation, and market the area as a whole.

Unique model

The Baltic Private Equity and Venture Capital Association is a unique form of cooperation since there are no such cross-region venture capital organizations in other parts of Europe. “The Baltic Innovation Fund is an example of successful cross-border cooperation. We need to further increase cooperation and bring small markets under one umbrella as otherwise the bigger countries have competitive advantage at involvement of private equity and venture capital,” he said.

Edgars Pigoznis mentioned that for the Baltic States, it is not practical to communicate with institutional investors outside the Baltic States, the business angels and venture capital companies separately. “The central marketing and management of relationships is reasonable and efficient from the point of view of all three states and all parties,” Pigoznis added.

Simplified cooperation

The created umbrella organization will also help to concentrate the organization of events and forums. “Global investors would rather participate in an event where they can get an overview of all the Baltic States and not only Latvia, Lithuania or Estonia separately. The Baltic Private Equity and Venture Capital Association will also collect, systematize, analyze and publish the sectorial data, which will be easier accessible to everyone in the industry,” said Pigoznis.

Latvian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association also trusts that establishment of the umbrella organization helps to coordinate cooperation regarding the development of lawmaking and regulations in the area of venture capital.